Tuesday, March 6, 2012

April 27, on this day most of the college juniors who hope to attend medical school will take the Medical College Admission Test; this year's test is a completely new one, and is designed to put greater emphasis on logical reasoning and communications skills, and less on math and science. In addition to answering multiple-choice questions, those taking the MCAT will be required for the first time to write essays. (Sample topics from an MCAT practice test: "Price is not necessarily a reflection of value"; "In politics, good intentions cannot justify bad actions.") "The impetus for including the essay," says Dr. Karen Mitchell, an official at the Association of American Medical Colleges, which oversees the MCAT, "came from a number of sources, one being reports from medical-school deans who felt their students could not communicate well either in writing or orally, and another being the criticism of doctors in general for being technocrats and not allowing patients to participate in their own health care."

April 27, on this day most of the college juniors who hope to attend medical school will take the Medical College Admission Test; this year's test is a completely new one, and is designed to put greater emphasis on logical reasoning and communications skills, and less on math and science. In addition to answering multiple-choice questions, those taking the MCAT will be required for the first time to write essays. (Sample topics from an MCAT practice test: "Price is not necessarily a reflection of value"; "In politics, good intentions cannot justify bad actions.") "The impetus for including the essay," says Dr. Karen Mitchell, an official at the Association of American Medical Colleges, which oversees the MCAT, "came from a number of sources, one being reports from medical-school deans who felt their students could not communicate well either in writing or orally, and another being the criticism of doctors in general for being technocrats and not allowing patients to participate in their own health care."